სერბეთი Natural History Museum in Belgrade

09.10.2017

CULTURAL OPERATOR(S)

Name

Natural History Museum in Belgrade

Short description

The Natural History Museum in Belgrade is among the leading cultural institutions in Serbia. The museum preserves 120 collections with over 1,800,000 specimens of rock, minerals, fossils, plants and animals from Serbia and Balcans. The museum has significant activity in the fields of biological and geological sciences, ecology and environmental protection, as well as museology and museum communication. Numerous museum exhibitions attract audience in Belgrade and Serbia with over 130 000 visitors. Museum achieved two remarkable national awards for the contribution to the culture development in Serbia: 2013 the prestigious National Award "Mihajlo Valtrović" by The Museum Society of Serbia, and 2016 “The Sretensky Orden of the Second Order”, by The President of the Republic of Serbia.

The project is based on an interdisciplinary approach through the fields of culture, biology, agriculture, economics, ethnology and others. In terms of activities, the project will primarily focus on the development of the business model in the field of cultural heritage, and in addition, numerous exhibitions, presentations, educational programs, research work, fairs, conferences, etc.

The initial idea was already realized by the Project and author's exhibition " The Old and Indigenous Fruits of Serbia" 2013-2017), in which the problem of the disappearance of old fruit varieties in Serbia was presented in an attractive and scientific way. Two themes have been highlighted: the erosion of the autochthonous genotypes and the preservation of agro-biodiversity and traditional knowledge related to the rural environment.

In the period 2013-2017 the exhibition was exposed 28 times in the museums all over Serbia and it has over 40,000 visitors, as well as visible media campaign. The great interest of the visitors was also the motive to preserve in the yards (in sity) the dissapearing fruit varieties, as well as traditional knowledge in the proccesing of fruit as a unique heritage.

Within the project Museum in the yard: indigenous varieties of Europe through various activities (exhibition, publication, panel discussion, product fair, mapping of households in selected villages, etc.) partners from different European countries would deal with the preservation of their indigenous and traditional varieties not only of fruits, but also of vegetables and cereals, related to their use and inheritance of personal stories of the population that are related to the history of breeding. One of the most important activities would be the formation of a "museum in the yard" and working with the local population, where it would be aimed at motivating the audience for interactive participation in the research and preservation of various varieties of their area.

The priorities of the project are the development of the audience and the development of the business model in order to sustainability of the heritage preserve. Through the integrated activities of partners from participating countries, each country could present its traditional varieties of fruits, vegetables or cereals to promote experience and knowledge in use in the processing of autochthonous products, with an emphasis on their preservation and sustainability for future populations.

Through participatory activities with the public, attention is paid to the importance of preserving the cultural heritage of natural resources and the specificities of all parts of Europe.

PARTNERS SEARCHED

Countries

All eligible countries

Profile

All profiles of organizations.

Preferably: Museums, CSO working in cultural heritage field, organizations working in the creative industries, organizations interested in audience development etc.

OTHER

We are looking for an organization which would like to be a lead partner.

We are negotiating with one creative hub from Serbia, which is interested in strategic support in terms of developing a business model for the project. The organization has great experience in EU projects, especially in the projects of Creative Europe.